Barcelona F1 test – Day 2: Verstappen fastest as Hadjar crashes

The second day of Formula 1’s Barcelona Shakedown week was a tale of two halves for Red Bull, with Max Verstappen setting the pace around a wet and soggy Circuit de Catalunya while Isack Hadjar crashed out late in Tuesday’s session.

With rain sweeping across the track from early morning, track action was at a premium. Mercedes and Haas stayed in the garage along with Racing Bulls, Audi, Cadillac and Alpine, while McLaren also opted against running.

Red Bull therefore found itself sharing the circuit only with Ferrari.

That left Verstappen with a rare stretch of uncluttered running as he took charge of the RB22 in the morning session. Despite the damp conditions, the Dutchman managed to log useful mileage and ultimately emerged as the fastest driver of the day – though lap times, as throughout the shakedown, carried little real meaning.

Verstappen’s session was not entirely without drama. On his out lap, he briefly strayed off the circuit at Turn 5 and into the gravel, triggering the day’s first red flag.

The car escaped unharmed, and the four-time world champion was soon back underway, continuing Red Bull’s programme before handing over to Hadjar in the afternoon.

Ferrari was the only other team running, with Charles Leclerc taking the SF-26 out in the morning before Lewis Hamilton assumed driving duties later in the day.

Hadjar’s Wet Running Ends in the Barriers

Hadjar’s task after lunch was clear: gain experience in tricky wet conditions after missing out on dry running earlier in the day. With rain continuing to fall, the Frenchman ventured out to explore the RB22’s behaviour on a soaked circuit.

But with roughly 30 minutes remaining on the clock, Red Bull’s productive – if limited – day came to a sudden end. Hadjar lost control of the car at the final corner, skated across the gravel and struck the tyre barriers on the outside of the track.

It remains unclear whether the incident was caused by driver error or a mechanical issue. Eyewitnesses reported that the RB22 came to rest backwards and shed its rear wing in the impact, sustaining damage that made a return to the circuit before the 6pm chequered flag highly unlikely.

The crash effectively ended Red Bull’s running for the day, leaving the team to assess the extent of the damage and the availability of spare parts.

With the Barcelona test operating behind closed doors, no official imagery or timing data was released, adding to the uncertainty surrounding the aftermath.

Flexibility – and Questions – for Red Bull

While the incident brought Tuesday’s session to a premature close, Red Bull is not without options. As the only team to have run on both Monday and Tuesday, it has already used two of the three days it is permitted to participate in during the five-day shakedown.

That leaves the Milton Keynes outfit free to choose when it completes its final day of running before Friday – a flexibility that could prove valuable if replacement parts need to be flown in from the UK.

Monday had already shown the RB22’s potential, with Hadjar topping the opening day as Red Bull made an impressive first impression with the first car it has built around its own in-house power unit, developed in collaboration with Ford.

Tuesday, by contrast, was more about survival than statements. Verstappen managed to extract useful early running, Hadjar finally got a taste of wet conditions – and Red Bull was reminded how quickly testing plans can unravel when weather and risk collide.

As the team looks ahead to the remainder of the week, the focus will now shift from pace and progress to repairs and recovery.

The RB22 has already shown flashes of promise. The question is how soon it will be ready to return to the track and continue its baptism into Formula 1’s new era.

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